DENVER — “We were wrong.”
Those were the words included in a prepared statement read by Kelly McCrimmon to open what should have been a straightforward pre-series presser.
After being in the eye of a few different NHL storms of late, the Vegas Golden Knights GM felt compelled to clarify — somewhat — his team’s stance on a pair of controversies he discussed earlier in the day with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.
One was his coach’s doing, the other was his.
“We were today in New York, where we had a hearing with the National Hockey League regarding the events following Game 6,” said McCrimmon, whose coach was fined $100,000 and his club was docked a second-round draft pick after John Tortorella kept the locker room closed and refused to speak to the media after eliminating Anaheim.
“We missed a great opportunity that night to connect with our fans and share with them the victory of a playoff series. I’ve always felt in a playoff series, when you win a series, you galvanize the bond with your fan base. We missed that opportunity by not having John available to do post game. That’s on John for failing to do that. That’s on me as general manager of the hockey club. That’s not at the feet of our comms people, who made other arrangements with each of you to accommodate tight quarters in and around our dressing room postgame. We have no explanation other than to say we were wrong and to assure you that it will not happen again. The league has spoken on the matter. We have spoken on the matter. Neither John or I will be taking any questions on this.”
With his team’s Tuesday morning appeal denied, he considered the case closed.
What isn’t yet resolved is the curious case of Bruce Cassidy.
McCrimmon confirmed several teams have sought permission to speak with the former Jack Adams winner, who they fired with eight games remaining and another year left on his contract.
But even though teams in Toronto, Edmonton, Los Angeles and Vancouver are searching for their next head coach, he suggested the timing isn’t right for him to concern himself with the matter.
“We’ve been consistent that our focus currently is on the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and the teams have respected that,” said McCrimmon, admitting no wrongdoing.
“I’ve spoken with Bruce, he understands this as well.”
The NHL Coaches’ Association doesn’t understand it, as they released a statement earlier Tuesday, condemning the Golden Knights for what they said is an unprecedented stance on a man seeking future employment.
“While we respect the league’s rules and processes, it is our position that coaches who remain under contract, but are no longer working for their club, should not be prevented from pursuing other employment opportunities,” it read.
“It would be unprecedented at the head coaching level should multiple teams be denied permission to speak with Coach Cassidy. The situation is still unfolding, but our priority is to protect the interests of our members in this type of circumstance.”
With the GMs traditionally called upon to kick off the conference final with a media availability, many wondered how, or if, McCrimmon would acknowledge the elephants in the room.
He did, and then immediately moved on to answering questions about the series with Colorado that opens at Ball Arena Wednesday, marking the fifth time in Vegas’ nine seasons it will play in the Western Conference Final.
